Crest Hill carved out its own identity on January 22, 1960, when residents chose to incorporate as an independent city rather than become part of neighboring Joliet, and that spirit of self-determination still shapes the community today. Spread across roughly 10 square miles in Will County, about 40 miles southwest of Chicago, the city offers a calm, residential atmosphere with convenient access to the broader metro area via Interstate 55 and nearby Metra commuter rail stations.
Lewis University in Romeoville, the University of St. Francis in Joliet, and Joliet Junior College are all within a 10-minute drive, giving the area a consistent educational presence. One of the city's most compelling historical chapters belongs to the Lidice neighborhood, originally called Stern Park Gardens, which renamed itself in 1942 to honor a Czech village destroyed during World War II, drawing both a former U.S. presidential candidate and a Czechoslovak president-in-exile to the dedication ceremony.
